Y’all have already seen the video on my Instagram and I’m catching up on my blog by posting the recipe. There’s something about Gula Melaka that just feels so tropical! I woke up one morning wishing to taste the flavors of Pandan and Gula Melaka so I looked up a simple pancake recipe and incorporated the two.
I was flipping through my latest issue of Natural Health magazine – love that publication and am an ardent subscriber – and read an article on sugar substitutes. I found out that Gula Melaka (coconut palm sugar) is a healthy sugar, low in the glycemic index and full of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.
More interestingly, in that same article and I absolutely MUST share this, it’s also mentioned that agave nectar – the popular default of supposedly a “healthier” alternative to sugar, is actually BAD for you. Many people interested in staying healthy have switched to agave as a safer “natural” sweetener because they want to avoid well-documented dangerous sweeteners like HFCS (high fructose corn syrup). But what people need to know is that most agave is actually WORSE because it contains a more concentrated fructose level in it (70% to 97%) than high fructose corn syrup (55%) itself. Additionally, your risk of liver damage increases, along with triglycerides and a whole host of other health problems.
:0 Gee, who’d thunk!? Shocking. I’m tossing my bottle of unopened agave nectar syrup and defecting to Gula Melaka exclusively from now on as sugar substitute.
Pandan Buttermilk Pancakes with Gula Melaka Syrup
Ingredients
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2 drops pandan extract
2 tablespoons butter, melted
cooking spray
Method
Combine milk with vinegar in a medium bowl and set aside for 5 minutes to “sour”. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk egg and butter into “soured” milk. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk until lumps are gone. Add pandan extract. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto the skillet, and cook until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side. Serve with gula melaka syrup and whipped cream (optional).
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